>>54350683

Don't know about a CS degree, but experience > certifications. Get any sort of tech job you can and study for certifications when off work.

>>54350683

IT Security guy/former QSA here. Don't waste your time with that security cert horseshit. If you can get an employer to pay for those pieces of paper do it, otherwise learn the lingo, build up some experience and bullshit your way in. Most of the people in IT Security (outside of Pen testing) are bullshit artists.

I have been in IT Sec for 25+ years. A high school kid can do it.

>>54350874
Do you have any advice as to where and what specifically I should start learning? If I don't need the certifications then that would be awesome, but if I were to go that path should I just wait to see what my employer wants me to get? I'd like to move up into the industry as quick as possible, even if I have to pay for a few certifications to do it.

my roommate interned for a dod contractor and said they like the cissp cert, but experience is always most important

>back in high school, parents were making me look for a job

>apply for a job at random places

>just say during interviews that I like working with computers and throw in some spicy /g/ lingo

>get put into IT

>still using it on my resumes today

A lot of people get by lying about their certs evidently, but it may do you some good just to get them on the side, extra book knowledge never hurts, but I learned almost everything so far via experience, and then looking thru comptia books the exam info is over what you've been doing as second nature already, so there's that.

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It cannot hurt especially if you're just spending your spare time fapping anyway. Certs can cover a lot of boring fundamentals you wont easily get by yourself.

IT:

Experience > Degree > Certs

Programmers:

Portfolio == Experience > Degree > Certs

>>54351327
>IT degree > certs
fuck off Pajeet

To better understand what you need, you need to get into the frame of mind of who will be looking at your resume. After you apply for a job online, it's often filtered by software that looks for specific keywords. If it's not filtered by software, it's filtered by either a recruiter or some obese middle-aged woman in HR. What those three things have in common is that they have no idea what your job actually entails and will instead be looking at a checklist of requirements. The more of these requirements you meet, the more likely you'll get an interview with someone that vaguely knows what they're hiring you for.

There are certain jobs that require degrees. Usually with large multinationals because they want to set some sort of standard in their hiring process. There are some jobs that a degree will help you get a foot in the door as well. For IT, a degree is often optional and they will accept experience in lieu of it. Obviously that's difficult for someone that doesn't have experience, but not insurmountable. It just means you'll have to work something like help desk first, until you either get the experience or a degree. Or both.

Certifications are good for that as well. They give the fat lady in HR another box to check next to your name. As another benefit, some certifications are actually really good at teaching you the ins-and-outs of whatever they're certifying you for. As long as you don't go the Indian route and cheat, that is.

>>54351819
Oh, and one more thing. You should target your job searches. Look for a career you're interested in, and look at the common requirements you see for it on job listing sites. Then go after those. This way is much more efficient than the buckshot method of just getting a bunch of random certs.